Canada



A. G. ROSS.

REFRIGERATING MACHINE. APHIQATION FILED MAY 26, I921- 1,416,878. I Patent d Mayi23,1922.

WWW/Mm omreo STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR G. ROSS, 0F VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA.

REFRIGER-ATING MACHINE.

Application filed May 26,

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR Gr. Ross, citizen of the Dominion of Canada, residing at Vancouver, in the Province of British C0- lumbia, Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Refrigerating Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a refrigerating or cooling machine of that class wherein the lower temperature is attained by the evaporation of a volatile and readily condensable' material, such as ammonia, and the reduced temperature so attained is distributed by a medium, such as brine.

The machine is particularly designed to enable this cooling principle to be applied in a small sized plant or for domestic use. This is effected by a simplified construction and reduction of the number of parts and by providing .a liquid ammonia vessel that is relatively small in cross section and vertically elongated, the pumping cylinder by which the vapour is withdrawn from the tank being in direct connection and in axial alignment with the ammonia vessel, thus allowing the crank, by which the pump piston is reciprocated, to be placed in the lower end of the ammonia chamber, and the connecting rod to be operable through the vessel.

The construction by which these results are attained is fully set forth in the following specification, reference being made to the drawings by which it is accompanied, in which:

Fig. l is a vertical longitudinal section of the device. L

Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line 2-2 in Fig. 1 showing the crank-case 1n 1ts relation to the ammonia vessel.

In these drawings 2 represents a bed plate in which a shaft 3 is rotatably mounted. On one end of this shaft is secured a belt pulley 4 and on the other end is a crank 5. The crank rotates within a casing 6 formed in the bed plate 2 and the crank shaft is glandpacked where it passes into thecasing.

The upper end of this crank casing 6 1s flanged to receive a vertically elongated ammonia vessel 7 of relatively small diameter in cross section and concentric with this vessel 7 is a brine tank 8 secured in the flange joint of the cylinder 7 to the crank casing, and extending upward to approximately the same height as the chamber 7.

To the upper end of the ammonia vessel 7 Specification of Letters Patent. Patented M 23 1922 1921. Serial No. 472,795.

a pump cylinder 9 of smaller diameter is secured by aflange joint. In this cylinder 9 1S endwise movable a piston 10 which is connected by a rod 11 to the pin of a crank 5. The piston 10 has a suction valve 12 in it openlng upward, and a discharge valve .16

also opening upward in a safety head 13,

which head is endwise movable in the upper part of the pumpcylinder 9 and connected by a spring 1 to the cylinder head 15.

From the space above the safety head 13, the discharge from the valve 16 delivers into the upper end of a condensing coil 17 disposed around the cylinder 9, the lower end of which coil is connected to a duct 18 through which the condensed liquid ammonia is returned, through a controlling valve 19, to the upper part of the cylinder 7.

Enclosing the condensing coil 17 is a water vessel 20, the lower end of which is secured to a flange around the lower end of the cylinder 9 and through this vessel 20 water is delivered to cool and condense the lng rod 11 passes, the reason for which partition will be explained later.

The space within the crank casing 6 within which the crank 5 rotates is charged with a heavy lubricating oil, preferably paraifine, that the crank pin may be automatically lubricated during rotation, and on this oil the vessel is charged to about onethird its depth, with anhydrous ammonia, such as is used for evaporation in refrigerators.

When the shaft 3 is rotated to reciprocate the piston 10, the vapour of the ammonia is withdrawn by the pump piston 10 and is circulated through and compressed in the condensing coil 17. Simultaneously the pressure in the chamber 7 from which the vapour is withdrawn is reduced.

The control valve 19 in the connection between the condensing coil 17 and the delivery at 14 to the ammonia vessel 7, enables the return passage therethrough to be restricted to any extent necessary to give the desired reduction of pressure in the upper part of the ammonia chamber 7 favourable to the volatilization of the ammonia, and the desired compression within the'c6nden'sing coil favourable to its condensation.

The'value of the invention'resides in the simplicity of construction, which I" am enabled to attain by connecting the pump cylinder to the upper end of the ammonia chamber and by operating its piston froma crank located in the bottom of the chamber; also by connecting the condensing coil to the upper end of the pump cylinder that the condensed ammonia may return directly back to the chamber from which it was evaporated.

It-may be urged that the intimate presence of the lubricatingoilwill interfere with the evaporation of the ammonia: That they will be churned up together by the rotation of the crank 5; but it will be noted that the churningaction is confined to thecrank case,

and although there is communication between the crank case 6 and ammonia vessel 7', the crank case is relatively remote from the' ammonia, evenwhen churned up with it,

there will be no tendency for the particles of oilto ascend to the upper part of the ammonia in the chamber, and it is from the upper part'alone and from the newlycon densed ammonia coming in that the evaporation will occur.

Having now particularly described my invention, I hereby declare that what I claim as new and desire to be protected in by Letters Patent, is:

l. A refrigeratingmachine comprising a vertically elongatmlammonia vessel, a pump cylinder in axial alignment'and direct communication with the upper end of the said ammonia vessel, a condensing tube directly connected to the upper end of the pump cylinder and delivering into the upper endof the ammonia vessel, a crank case secured to the bottom and in axial alignment with the ammonia vessel a crank rotatably mounted in said crank case, a piston in said pump cylinder, a connecting rod between said piston and said crank, said piston having a oneway valve and a back check valve in said pump cylinder for controllingthe admission from the condensing tube to 'the' 'piston substantially as shown and described.

2. Ina refrigerating machine of the characted described, a vertically elongated pipe flanged at the ends and constituting an ammonia vessel, a crank case having a flange secured to the lower flange of said ammonia vessel and forming a bottom closure therefor," a flanged pump cylinder mounted on the upperend ofsaid ammonia vessel and forming a top closure therefor, a hollow pump piston reciprocally mounted in said pump cylinder, said pump cylinder being in communication with said ammonia vessel,-

said pump piston having a one-way check valve, a crank mounted-in said crank case, a

connecting rod between said crank and said piston, a floating safety head in the said pumpcylinder having a passage providedwith a back check valve, a head for said pump cylinder, a spring between said pumpcylinder head and said floating safety head,

a condensing coil-having one end connected With'said pump cylinder to receive material from the upper end ofsaid pump cylinder, the other end of said'condensing coil being connected with said ammonia vessel near its top, a brine tank embracing said ammonia vessel and a water tank embracing said pump cylinder and containing said condensing coil substantially as shown and described.

3. Av refrigerating machine comprising a vertically elongated ammonia vessel, a pump cylinder in axlal alignment and direct communicationwith. thejupper end of the said ammonia vessel,'a condensing tube directly connected to the upper endof the pump .cylinder and delivering into the upper end of the ammonia vessel, a crank case secured to the bottom and in axial alignment with the ammonia vessel, a crank rotatably mounted in said crankcase, a piston in said pump cylinder, a connecting rod between said pis ton and said crank, said piston having a one-way valve and a back check valve in said pump cylinder for controlling the admission to the condensing tube from the piston, said crank case having dividing partitions provided fforv the purposes specified.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

ARTHUR G. ROSS. 

